1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cassette housing therein a radiation conversion panel for converting a radiation that has passed through a subject into radiation image information.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the medical field, there have widely been used radiation image capturing apparatus which apply a radiation to a subject and guide the radiation that has passed through the subject to a radiation conversion panel, which captures a radiation image from the radiation. Known forms of the radiation conversion panel include a conventional radiation film for recording a radiation image by way of exposure, and a stimulable phosphor panel for storing a radiation energy representing a radiation image in a phosphor and reproducing the radiation image as stimulated light by applying stimulating light to the phosphor. The radiation conversion panel is housed in a cassette having a casing. The radiation film with the recorded radiation image is supplied to a developing device to develop the radiation image, or the stimulable phosphor panel is supplied to a reading device to read and obtain the radiation image as a visible image.
As disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-172783, the cassette comprises a grid for removing scattered radiation rays, an operation pad including a power supply switch, etc., and a display unit for displaying operational information entered from the operation pad, patient information, a warning, etc., all mounted on a plate of the casing.
The display unit of the cassette is disposed on an upper surface of the casing which faces the patient, i.e., the subject when the patient lies over the cassette for capturing a radiation image of the patient, the display unit is covered by the patient, making it difficult for surgeons and other staff members to see the display unit and confirm the patient information, etc. displayed on the display unit.
If the orientation of the casing of the cassette is changed to bring the cassette into alignment with the affected part of the patient, the display unit may be located in a position away from the surgeons and other staff members and hence may not be seen. As a result, the patient information, etc. displayed on the display unit may not easily be confirmed by the surgeons and other staff members. Conversely, if the cassette is located in favor of the visibility of the display unit, the orientation of the casing may be limited, tending to lower the efficiency in capturing radiation images with the cassette.